


Song of the Youth

by Litastic



Series: Shots of Jupiter [2]
Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-02
Updated: 2017-11-02
Packaged: 2019-01-28 15:01:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12609248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Litastic/pseuds/Litastic
Summary: A little idea I had after listening to Stockhausen's Gesang der Jünglinge. It's a bit bizarre but it gave me the idea of age manipulation so I thought I'd explore that. Also, baby Danny with ghost powers. How much fun would Sam and Tucker have with that, right?





	Song of the Youth

 

His body refuses every signal his brain sends throughout his nervous system. Everything shuts down; he was merely an inanimate being floating amidst blobs of colour amalgamating into a rainbow wreck. He isn't sure if what he's seeing is real or simply a pigment of his imagination.  _Heh, pigment._ A soft chuckle fills the air but it sounds foreign, like watching a video of yourself except in reverse.

He doesn't ponder the idea any longer. Strange how his thoughts seem to come and go without his volition. More blurs of colour, which seem to have an aversion towards coercion, invade his vision.

There's a softness in the air around him. A tune creeps towards his ears like waves upon a shore, coming and going. It's a nice melody that reminds him of the days when his mom would sing him to sleep after fretful nightmares. He wishes for it to stay put.

The assortment of hues languidly bumps into each other and intertwine, forming a sort of hourglass shape. Two thin strands emerge from either side of the figure and reaches towards him.

He never knows if he had shut his eyes.

...

'Ugh…Come on! I know Danny's known for being perpetually late but don't you think this is a bit ridiculous?' The thick sole of a combat boot taps irritatingly against the hot cement as Sam Manson flicks her gaze towards the door for the millionth time in the past half hour.

She doesn't wait for a reply and is already up the steps. A deflated sigh escapes her companion's mouth as she knocks on the door.

Tucker shoves his prized pieces of technology into one of his many pockets and follows suit, 'Maybe he slept in again? I mean he hasn't been answering his–'

'Sam! Tucker!'

The two teens jump from the booming voice of Jack Fenton as his bulky form takes up the entire entrance.

'What are you kids doin' here? Oh wait lemme guess…you wanna hear about the new Fenton Flipperoni, hey? Oh boy! You kids are gonna love this!'

Whatever retorts begging to escape Sam and Tucker's mouths are instantly evaporated as Jack Fenton's humongous hands pick them up like toys.

Jack kicks the door shut and in two big strides (what would have been ten average human steps) he's in front of the basement still towing a teen in each arm. All the while babbling on about his new gadget.

The Fenton Flipperoni, as he so mentioned no less than a thousand times, essentially absorbs whatever ghosts throw their way, reciprocates it, and fires back. And thus the name was born. On top of that, Jack was having pepperoni pizza at the time of its creation. Hence, the added suffix.

Before he gets the chance to bound down the steps, the equally excited shouts of Maddie Fenton reach his ears.

'Jack, honey! Who was that at the door?'

The giant of a man turns so quickly, a couple disgruntled yelps are forced out of the kids. Tucker's face is a sickly shade of green from all the movement, meanwhile Sam has her arms crossed dangling off her shoulders. A permanent scowl paints her pale face. It's a surprise they haven't had their heads crushed against a wall.

'Mads! Look who's here to check out the new Fenton Flipperoni!'

Maddie pauses halfway down the staircase to stare at the display before her. Her husband genially puts on that big goofy smile of his, blissfully unaware that he was carrying their son's two best friends like puppies. She isn't surprised. With a roll of her eyes, she makes her way towards the kitchen.

'Jack, put the kids down. I'm sure they're here to see Danny.' The pout looks ridiculous on Jack's face and he reluctantly releases the two teens, 'His door's still shut but you kids go on ahead and wake him up! He's been cooped up there all last night too…'

At this, Sam and Tucker glance warily each other. The mutter a quick thanks to Mrs. Fenton and sprint up the steps, leaving behind the older Fentons to gabber about their new inventions and cookie recipes.

The door marked with stickers of stars and rockets and the word Danny hastily cut from poster board glares at them ominously. As if it knows what's happening and yet it still dares you to intrude.

Sam raps on the door a couple times while calling his name. No reply. She tries again and on the third knock Tucker reaches a hand towards her wrist and shushes her with a finger.

'Do you hear that?' He whispers harshly and she listens once more.

At first she hears nothing. She rests an ear against the door and her eyebrows jump off her face when she hears it. Someone's crying…but it sounds like a…

Tucker and Sam burst through the door. Danny's room is as messy as ever. It's like playing the ground is lava. Except, instead of lava, it's dirty laundry and forgotten assignments. They make their way towards the noise and find a little bump hidden under the covers of his bed.

Danny is nowhere in sight.

His parents hadn't seen him all of last night.

And now, there's something in his bed.

Sam equips herself with the Fenton wrist ray while Tucker pulls out the lipstick tube camouflaged as an ecto-weapon. He reaches towards the covers. The teens nod simultaneously and Tucker tears the sheets off the bed. They charge up their weapons and aim at…at…a…baby?

'Oh my gosh…Is that…'

'I think so…but how? And why is he in his ghost form?'

'I don't know but we've got to figure out who did this and change him back.'

'How are we gonna do that? We don't even know any ghosts who can make someone turn into a baby? Oh man, oh man, this is like Tetslaff's assignment all over again.'

The conversation bounces back and forth like a game of ping pong as the teens wrap the infant in his black and white jumpsuit pooling around his chubby little limbs. Sam picks him up gingerly rocking him in her arms. Danny's cries slow to little hiccups and Sam fights every urge to tickle his little button nose.

'You know, he's kind of a cute ghost baby.'

'Shut up.' Sam glares at Tucker and he snickers, 'C'mon, let's go figure this out and–' Something awful fills the air, causing them to wrinkle their noses. They stare at Danny's innocent neon eyes in disgust.

'And diapers. Lots of diapers. Last one to the door deals with it!' Tucker is already leaping down the stairs before Sam can even smack him upside the head.

'I hate this. I hate this so much.'

…

After quickly escaping FentonWorks (which wasn't too hard since the older Fentons were already cooped up in the basement lab tinkering with who knows what), Sam and Tucker make a quick stop at a local store to pick up supplies.

They dutifully ignore the skeptical looks from strangers wondering what on earth two sixteen year olds are doing with a baby and a handful of diapers. (Plus a chocolate bar or twenty for Tucker's protesting stomach.)

Sam tosses a fifty on the counter to face yet another disapproving glare. 'We're just babysitting.' She spits out. Grabbing her change and Tucker's sleeve, they leave the store in a huff.

During their trip, they were caught in a heated discussion on who to ask for help. The teens clearly did not know enough about taking care of a one-year-old that wasn't a sack of flour.

Sam's parents were completely out of the question, knowing they would jump to ridiculous conclusions without the need for proof of any sort. Jazz was out of town visiting colleges and Vlad wasn't even considered as a nominee.

Which leaves them with Angela Foley.

Mrs. Foley never really questions her son and his friend's adventures but she knows that in a ghost-infested town, such as Amity Park, kids are bound to be curious. Though she worries for her child's safety, she does her best to help whenever she can.

Needless to say, she wasn't all too shocked when Sam and Tucker arrive at her doorstep claiming they found a baby ghost and simply insisted on taking care of him. God knows what these kids are really up to these days.

Angela knew enough about ghosts to understand that not all of them are evil. Her son had always been a Danny Phantom supporter and she saw no fault in the teenage ghost hero's attempt to keep their streets clear of ghostly activity. Plus, what harm could an infant do?

Correction: What harm could a  _ghost_  infant do?

So, here she is with a glowing little child, all fed and dressed in Tucker's old hand-me-downs, sleeping soundly in her arms. Her hair is frozen stiff from the little ghost's disobedience to stay put when she changed him. Tucker's beret has a giant hole revealing the crown of his head all thanks to a sudden ghostly baby wail. And Sam is wringing out her hair by the sink from a previous encounter with little Danny's breakfast.

They hover around the kitchen in peaceful silence, save for Tucker's frantic fingers travelling across his laptop keyboard.

'So, kids,' Sam and Tucker perk up at Angela's voice, 'When are you going to return this…baby to his parents? I mean, they must be worried sick and I am not having another ghostly encounter under my roof.'

The two teens freeze and eye one another. Taking one last bite of his chocolate bar, Tucker crumples the candy wrapper and tosses it in the trash, missing terribly. 'Well, that's the thing mom…We don't really um,  _know_ who his parents are.'

Angela's eyebrows furrow with concern and a tinge of anger. 'Tucker. You know we can't keep a ghost here forever. Let alone a baby.' The little bundle in her arms wriggles around. She slowly rocks him hoping to calm him down. 'Maybe the Fentons will have something to help you with this? Speaking of, where is Danny? Weren't you two supposed to be at his place today?'

Sam walks up beside Angela, rubbing a towel through her hair. Her eyes widen, noticing the fact that the baby's clothes seem to have grown another size. Or perhaps that he had shrunk.

'You're right Mrs. Foley! Here, we'll take him out of your hands right away.' Quickly, but gently, Sam snatches up the baby and desperately tries to send a signal to Tucker.

He glances at Sam then back at his mother. 'Y-yea, mom we'll take care of him now. Danny's probably been waiting for forever, heh.' He snaps his laptop shut and shoves it into his backpack.

He quickly lands a peck on Angela's cheek, ignoring her questioning glare. 'Bye mom! Thanks mom! See ya at dinner love ya!'

The door slams shut and Angela is left alone with her thoughts. She pushes them aside and mumbles under her breath, 'I'll never understand those kids.'

…

An untouched patch of green waves gently in the breeze before meeting its demise under another one of the goth girl's Godzilla like terror. The grass stands no chance against the storm of Sam's combat boots as she paces furiously in circles.

'I knew we should have stayed with him to track down that mystery ghost last night! But no, of course he said it would be fine! GAH! And now we have no idea who or what this ghost is and how to fix it!'

Tucker sits on the bench, cradling baby Danny in his arms while she continues to ramble. Sam's fury could have set off a nuclear explosion but he knows that under all that anger, fear is making a fierce comeback.

He would know, because he's plenty terrified for his best friend too.

The infant is significantly tinier than the first time they found him in his room and is continuing to shrink. During their walk from Tucker's to the park, they saw it all in action.

His ghostly aura had shone brighter and dimmed to less than its normal glow when he had shrunk. Danny would wail every time it happened leaving the two teens to pull out all the cards they had about calming a baby. In the end, it was Tucker getting his ear nabbed by Sam after a crude remark that did the job.

Sam guessed, from the couple hours they've been taking care of him, he had probably grown a few months backwards. A serious Benjamin Button case. And they both know where that leads if he keeps up this rate.

Tucker uses a free hand to scroll through the files on his laptop sitting next to him on the bench. 'I couldn't find anything about an age changing ghost. Danny's ghost files don't have anything useful either…' Just then, the baby hiccups, and a blue wisp escapes. Giggling, the infant reaches out to toy with the mysterious vapour, oblivious of the impending doom from his ghost sense.

The two teens are on their feet and back-to-back in an instant, scanning their surroundings for any threats. Little Danny shivers in Tucker's arm and shrinks once more. Those little lungs conjure up a pitiful cry that rips through the sound barrier.

Before they could begin their silly ritual of stopping the baby's wail, a soft hum of a lullaby echoes around them. The teens rummage around their pockets for their weapons only to realize they had left them in Danny's room.

A gush of wind cuts between them sending them tumbling into the ground. Tucker curls into a ball to protect Danny only to realize that he was embracing nothing but air.

'Oh no. No, no, no. Sam! SAM! I can't find Danny!' He frantically searches the ground around him and stares as the once perfectly green grass withers and browns before him. Looking up, he freezes at the sight of Sam's limp body sprawled next to the park bench. A sickly shade of red stains its corner.

Her name slips off his trembling lips once more as he crawls towards her. Her dark make-up looks surreal on her nearly white face save for the nasty cut on her forehead. He gently brushes her hair aside and wipes the blood off her face with a sleeve, holding back the bile crawling up his throat. Her body stirs ever so slightly, thin strips of white appear as her eyelids slowly separate themselves.

'T-tuck…er? Whe-…mmf..whe..re's..Da-ow…' Hissing, she slowly props herself up on her forearms. A looming shadow approaches and Tucker places himself between his wounded friend and the attacker. If Tucker wasn't so sure that this ghost was the enemy right now, he would've asked it for its number.

The stranger's figure would have put any model to shame. A gold dress glitters and hugs all her curves perfectly, covering just enough of her blue skin to make any man bend to her will. An hourglass is engrained into her exposed stomach, showing the sand trickling down, nearing the end of its run. Her short golden hair flows around her head as if she was a mermaid under water; matching eyes stare amusedly at the children before her.

'Stay back!' Tucker growls, pulling out his PDA in some show of a weapon.

The ghost hums and reveals the little bundle she has in her hands. Tucker's stance falters. The baby looks only a few months old now. His mess of white hair is now thinned out atop his fragile scalp. His once chubby hands are merely little stubs on his body.

'Hush now, or you'll wake my prize…' Her lips never move but the silky sweet voice infiltrates the air around him. She speaks slowly and quietly, as if every word was a secret of the universe.

'What do you…want from him?' Tucker flinches when he hears Sam's voice next to his ear, 'Be ready,' She adds only for him to hear. He glares at her in a mixture of concern and confusion. Her normally firm posture is slouched and she sways slightly. That hit to the head did her something awful.

The ghost bats the question away like a fly, 'That is of no concern to you mere mortals.' The split second it took for the glowing apparition to look away in disdain set Sam in action. She chucks her boot hitting its mark on the ghost's stomach.

Doubling forward in shock, the ghost lifts her head only to meet another boot colliding painfully with her forehead. Tucker finally understands Sam's warning, noticing the opening for him to run ahead and grab Danny out of the ghost's arm.

Sending a scathing glare, her slim blue arms aim a stream of shimmering golden energy at the teens. Tucker grabs Sam by the arm and pulls her alongside him as he dodges attack after attack. He bites back a retort on how she was the one who had to keep up with him just as a burst of energy explodes beside them, sending them airborne.

An old oak breaks their fall as they tumble down through the broken branches landing in a pitiful pile on the grass. Tucker wraps his body around little Danny, protecting him, as he takes the brunt of the fall.

The smoke fills the air, hiding Tucker and Sam from their attacker but also blinding them. As it starts to clear, Tucker crawls around, ignoring all the aches in his body as he searches for Sam. He finds her and quickly hauls her behind a nearby bush. He takes a moment to regain his breath, holding Sam close to him as he observes his surroundings.

The park is a mess of obliterated flora and fauna. Large beautiful oaks and willows look frail and papery unlike their usual majestic appearance. Patches of grass are uprooted everywhere. Sam would have a fit over this later, vocalizing the need to protect the earth.

'Come now, children. Return what's rightfully mine and this will all be over soon.' The voice sings and floats around them.

The tech-savvy teen takes a deep breath, trying and failing to readjust his cracked glasses. His mind is going on overdrive. Danny is practically the size of a kitten and completely unresponsive. He doesn't have much time.

He grasps his goth friend's shoulders and looks into her eyes, noticing how she couldn't keep them in one spot. They were both a mess of scratches and torn clothes. Sam's head wound is bleeding out again. Half her face was caked in the coppery substance. Her head probably feels like it's going through a hurricane.

The sounds of the ghost's barrage of ectoblasts approaches them paired with a sweet voice singing a lullaby. Tucker almost does a double-take, unable to wrap his mind around the fact that the maniacal ghost is pretending to be on American Idol while obliterating an entire park.

He spots a small shack just a few yards away. Turning around, the telltale sign of FentonWorks peeks through the cluster of trees a couple blocks farther. He quickly devises a plan.

Handing over the baby to an unfocused Sam, he holds her head in his hands, 'Sam? Sam please you gotta listen. There's a shack close by. You have to get there and hide okay? I'll distract her. Please Sam, can you hear me?'

She blinks hard a couple times, staring at the miniscule bundle in her arms. An iron grip encompasses the black teen's wrist. 'Her power…she can manipulate age or something…I saw it. The grass. It either gets sucked back into the ground or…grows and grows until…it turns yellow and crumbles. We have to…stop it…before…before Danny…' She relaxes her grip never finishing the single thought that constantly invades both their minds. One of the many perks of having a superhero best friend. 'Maybe Mr. Fenton's new weapon will work…against her.'

Tucker nods. 'Got it. Now go hi–',

'Tuck. Listen. I can distract her. Go hide Danny in that shack,' She hands Danny over back to her friend, 'I won't be able…to run that far to get to the Fentons on time and you know it. But you can. I'll keep her away from Danny.'

'Sam…'

'I'll be fine…Promise,' Tucker's eyes are hidden behind the glare of his crooked glasses as he lowers his head. Sam senses his worry crash into her like a wave and repeats quieter this time, 'I'll be fine, Tuck.'

He lifts his head up and meets her eyes, a firm line set on his lips. This is their best chance. Sam has always been strong. He has to believe that she can make it. He gives her hand a reassuring squeeze before they part ways.

'Hey Goldie! Over here!' The ghost spins around with a deep frown and darts towards her. Sam's taunts drift farther and farther away while Tucker sprints like a madman towards the shack.

Bursting through the door, he finds a little crate full of rags and places his half-ghost friend in the makeshift hiding spot, tucking the box in a corner out of sight. 'We'll be back, Danny, and you'll be just fine. We've been through worse things right?' He chuckles but his grin never meets his eyes. He gives one last look before dashing towards the Fenton's.

Tucker's legs scream at him to stop but he pushes forward, panting like a dog. From all the months of ghost hunting, running is still the bane of his existence.

Finally, he arrives. The ridiculous neon sign has never looked so inviting. He skips up the steps with an unknown burst of energy, knocking furiously on the door.

Mr. Fenton meets him at the entrance once again, but his boisterous happiness is soon replaced with confusion and worry at the sight of the teen. 'Gee, Tuck you look like you went through a blender. Hey…where are Danny and Sam?'

'Mr. Fenton…Ghost attack…at park…danger! Need your…Flipperwhatever…' He greedily gulps for air and rests his head against a headrest…outside Danny's house?

He doesn't realize it at first, but at the word ghost, The Fentons were already in action. Mrs. Fenton had already carried him into the GAV, checking his wounds, as Mr. Fenton geared up and filled the vehicle with weapons. Tucker tells them all about the ghost and her powers and in just under a minute, they arrive at the disastrous park in record time.

The GAV barely rolls to a stop as Maddie and Jack Fenton leap out of the car, running towards the radiant ghost, ecto-weapons blazing.

'Tucker go find Sam!' Maddie shouts as she somersaults away from another attack just as Jack dives in front of her and fires his ectogun at the ghost. The golden apparition merely glares daggers at the ghost hunter. Her glowing eyes spot Tucker running through the maze of fallen trees and she reappears in front of him, causing the teen to backpedal and fall flat on his butt.

'Where have you kept my prize, child?' The ghost's sing-song voice cuts through the air like a knife through butter. Her face is inches from his and he can feel the power she wields. It feels like a jackhammer is pounding against his skull. In the distance, he can hear the Fentons charging up their weapons.

'Hmm…perhaps we could negotiate a trade?' Jack and Maddie's well aimed blasts fly through the spot where the ghost had disappeared. Maddie gently lifts Tucker to his feet and he grips his head trying to squeeze the pain out of it.

They feel the chill return of the spirit behind them. Maddie and Jack turn ready to fire but stop dead in their tracks, fear laced in their eyes. The battered and bruised form of the teenage goth dangles like rag doll from the ghost's hand.

'Give me my prize, or you shall lose two instead of one.' She says this mockingly, losing a touch of her ethereal way of delivering words. She is well and truly mad. The Hourglass on her stomach shows a handful of sand left and Tucker realizes that it was Danny's lifeline. As soon as it runs out of time, so does his best friend.

Maddie leans towards the teen, still keeping her aim on the ghost, and asks, 'Tucker, what is she talking about?'

Tucker's mind is reeling and never registers the question so he answers with another. 'Where's the Fenton Flipperoni?' Never in his life would he have thought to use that name so seriously.

'It's back at the GAV, but we haven't tested it yet.' Jack's booming voice is unusually calm yet strained with worry.

'Doesn't matter. You guys are great scientists I'm sure it'll work.' The Fentons give him a wary smile.

'Alright, alright goldilocks! We'll get you your  _prize_.' He says louder for the ghost to hear and nods towards where the GAV was hastily parked. Maddie catches on and Jack follows suit after a strange exchange of expressions with his wife.

They hurry towards the assault vehicle with the glowing lady following behind. Jack digs through the weapons and finds their  _prize._

'HERE'S YOUR PRIZE ECTO-SCUM!' He whips around with a contraption nestled against his side with a handle on top which he wraps his knuckles around. The shining metal gleams in the sunlight and Jack pushes a button on the side of the rectangular metal box. A loud whine builds up, white light glows from the cylindrical opening. It charges up and Jack flicks another switch and…nothing happens.

'Uh oh.' The three stare dumbfounded at the device and flinch at the serene chuckle coming from the ghost.

'You dare fool me? You mortals stand no ch–ARGH!' Maddie lowers her weapon a fraction of an inch, the barrel still smoking from the last shot. A smug smile finds its way to her lips.

'URRGHHH! YOU WILL ALL PERISH FOR YOUR FOOLISHNESS YOU PATHETIC MORTALS!' The enraged spirit drops Sam carelessly onto the ground and charges up another ball of energy with both her hands aiming for the orange clad man.

'JACK!' Maddie pushes her husband out of the line of fire and Tucker quickly snatches the Fenton Flipperoni from the large man's hands.

He stands directly in front of the luminescent ray and flicks the switches just like Mr. Fenton did before. The force of the ghost's energy being sucked into the contraption causes Tucker to slide back a few feet. Once the energy was collected he quickly presses the other switch and the same burst of yellow explodes out of the device crashing into the ghost's torso.

The spirit tumbles back a few feet and is back on her feet in an instant. Her golden dress is charred black and the hourglass cracks. Her eyes glow menacingly as she stares at Tucker and her lips part for the first time revealing shark-like teeth bared and ready to rip his head off his shoulders.

'You. YOU IMPUDENT LITTLE RAT. I WILL…I wi–' Her words dwindle down to a pathetic squeak as her body glows in hues of lemony and honey gold. The hourglass slowly disintegrates, spreading throughout her body. She's shrinking. Her golden dress and hair are now unruly and grey-brown, her skin grows taught and her limbs shrink towards the center. As though a blackhole had been created in her stomach. The sound of her strangled gasps and whines fade away as does her entire being. Until there is nothing left but black sand on the ground.

Tucker's shoulders rise up and down almost comically as he gathers oxygen into his system. Maddie helps Jack to his feet and turn to see Tucker stumbling towards the black-haired girl laying on the ground.

'Jack…get the first aid kit and call an ambulance.' They catch up instantly and find the young teen cradling his friend closely, muttering gibberish with tears threatening to fall from his eyes.

It feels like a lifetime but Sam's eyes finally flutter ever so slightly, and she cracks a small smile at the sight of her friend's relieved face. 'Told you…I'd be…fine.' She rasps out, grimacing as she coughs up a storm. Her leg was bent at an awful angle, cuts and bruises painted her pale body.

Maddie gently tends to Sam's more treatable wounds while they await the paramedics. Tucker and Jack are chatting up a storm, marvelling at the effectiveness of the Fenton Flipperoni, to keep Sam awake.

The wailing sirens near them. A couple of EMTs rush towards to the little group with a stretcher. Soon enough, Sam was secured and ready to go when a paramedic approaches Maddie and Jack asking if they were related to the young girl. The question spikes up warning signals in their minds. They scribble down the Mansons' information in a craze before letting Sam be on her way to the hospital.

'Where's Danny?' Maddie almost chokes on the words. Her eyes are wide with all the fear of a mother as she grips Tucker's shoulders and looks him in the eye, 'Tucker. Where's Danny?'

…

 _Ouch._ That's the first thing that comes to mind when he finally grabs a hold of his senses. One moment he's listening to a lullaby, then he wakes up to a massive headache and aching limbs. He doesn't remember much but images of his friends pop in here and then. Were they really that much…bigger than him? It must've been a dream, he counters.

He finally opens his eyes, not realizing they were closed. His body is sprawled across overturned crates and garden tools. He groans.

A flash of white. Why was he in his ghost-form? His limbs ache for attention once more as his ghostly persona disappears, in return bringing back the feeling of pain. His body feels like it's being stretched and squished all at once. Like his bones had been shattered and are now struggling to stay connected.

He stays in that awkward lying position for a while, not daring to move a muscle for fear of initiating another jolt of agony. He hears a crack and sinks down a centimeter. His eyes make a hilarious show of fighting between confusion and annoyance. Another crack. And another. A final snap splinters the crate underneath him and he crashes onto the ground, various tools and unidentifiable objects fall on top of him as he lets out an undignified yelp.

'Ugh. Just…my luck.' He pulls enough energy out from his icy core to let his body pass between the atoms as he rolls out of the mess. His arms are trembling terrifically as he holds himself up, head hanging between his shoulders. That simple trick made his stomach twist. As though his own body was eating him alive from the inside out.

He hears something rustle ahead of him but he can't find the strength to stand. Instead he lifts his head to see a door swing open. The glaring yellow light of the sun fills the little room in an instant, making him squint. Shadows appear around him, grabbing his arms and calling his name.

He looks beside him, vision clearing, and his best friend's sweat-ridden face meets his glassy-eyed stare. He laughs weakly.

'Gee, Tuck. You look awful.'

His friend gives him an incredulous look, then shakes his head and laughs.

'You don't look any better, dude.' They share crooked grins and he suddenly feels his body being lifted and held against a warm front. His head droops and he rests it against the familiar orange jumpsuit.

'Heh, hey Dann-o. You gave us quite the scare there.' His Dad's chest rumbles as he talks and Danny curls in closer to the nostalgic sensation.

When Danny was much younger, Dad would let him rest an ear against his chest when he told stories about the paranormal. He would feel the vibrations roll across his father's torso. The buzz of dad's baritone voice would echo within his large ribcage. It made Danny feel less scared about the unknown when his ears were getting tickled from all the movement.

A small hand brushes his hair back and rests on his cheek, bringing him back to the present. He opens his eyes to see his mom's smiling face. 'Let's get you home, honey.'

Danny hums in agreement and lets his heavy eyelids droop. He's out in an instant and has never felt more comfortable as he dreams of childhood memories and a never ending lullaby.

...

**Extended ending:**

_A few days later_

'So I actually froze your mom's hair, huh?' The raven-haired teen chuckles and tucks his hands in his pockets. Danny leans against the ledge of the window pane that was decorated with get well cards and a small bouquet of roses. Courtesy of Pamela Manson. Stars splatter across the night sky beyond the half-open blinds, 'I can't believe she actually let it slide.' He scoffs.

Tucker is barely sitting on the edge of a seat with a Gameboy in his hands, the light of the screen reflects off his glasses. His fingers furiously jam the buttons matching the frantic tap-tap-tap of his heel against the sterile hospital floor.

'Hah. Yea and you nearly took my head off my shoulders.' Tucker runs a hand across his short tuft of hair absentmindedly, missing the security of his red hat.

He knows his friend means it as a joke but the half-ghost teen still visibly cringes and lets out a long exhale. 'Man, I'm so sorry guys. I can't believe I let this happen.'

The sound of a book slamming shut diverts both of the boy's attention to the hospital bed. Frizzy black hair amplifies the furrowed brows of annoyance as Sam Manson delivers a menacing glower towards her best friend, 'Danny, I swear to god if you apologize one more time we'll be switching spots the next time we're in a hospital.'

Danny holds out his hands in a show of surrender and to block any item Sam might find to throw at him. (Jello is hard to get of his hair, he realizes after their visit the other day.) 'Alright, alright.' His eyes flicker towards the large cast on his friend's leg and the bandage around her head. The goth's sharp violet eyes catch his worried baby blues and he gets the message. His shoulders sag and a weary smile finds its way on his face, 'Honestly though, thanks. You guys are the best.'

'We  _know_.' Came the synchronized response.

A yawn escapes Sam's mouth and her half-lidded eyes alert them that it was time to let her rest. Visiting hours had long since gone by, but it was also the only time they could sneak in for a visit without her parent's knowing. They had a huge fit and had forbidden her to see 'That Fenton boy and his crazy family' for eternity.

Thankfully, she had persuaded them to cut down the timeline to three months. After, of course, begrudgingly agreeing to attend her mother's afternoon tea sessions with other wealthy families for the next while.

Danny transforms into his alter ego, causing a burst of light that is blinding in the dim room. Tucker is on his feet in an instant, eager to leave the confines of the doctor-and-patient-infested building. Sam tucks in farther under the covers from Danny's ghostly chill as she reclines her bed, muttering a barely audible 'Good night' to the two boys as they disappear beyond the white shutters. A few rose petals ruffle from the disturbance.

By next morning, Sam will never know how to explain to her parents that a freshly picked bouquet of roses from their garden browned and withered away overnight.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading folks! Quick note: I actually had trouble with how to end this little bit. It ends quite nicely as it did before the last bit, but if you are curious as to what else I had in mind feel free to re-read however you like. Think of it as an extended ending of sorts. Both endings have a different feel to it so I thought I'd give you readers the option to experience each one. I hope you enjoy!


End file.
